The weekly sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1886-1887, 1887-04-07
SUSPENDED ANIMATION.
Astonishine Experience Of an Indiana

Astonlshing Experience OF I'm AncAsnA
Farmer.
On the evening Of June 10: 1868.
George Wellington. an Indiana farmer,
had a gathering of friends at his house \
He was a man A years OF age. and OF
robust health, and on this evening IL
wa, noticed that he was in particularly
good spirits.
After the guests had departed ne
remarked to his wife that hs felt more
like singing and dancing than going to
bed. they retired about half past II
O'Clock, and she was asleep before mid
night.
o'clock, hut on the morning following
the party the wife awoke at and found
him still sleeping When she attempted
to arouse him she dlscovered that ne
was dead.
A doctor was sent for, and he arrived
IN the course OF en nour TO pronounce lt
a case OF heart disease. He said the
man cad been dead 5hree hours when
the wife awoao The undertaken came
and prepared the body for 5u-la4.
It was remarked that the corpse re-
tanned lite--iae appearance, and that
none Of tie limbs grew rigiI, bGt the
two other physicians called IL: vigorously
combattec t2s idea tiat he was In a
trance and might ce restored to life.
Neverthele 5, the wife and sons had a
secret hope that death had not really
come to him, and the funeral was put
two da, S ahead.
The burial was to take place in q
country graveyard, and most of the
vehicles gathering at the house belonged
to farmers The usual ceremonies took
place over the dead and the coffin was
brought out and placed in the hearse
While the procession was forming.
team at 'acaed to ar empty waS 4 cane
down the road, running away. me
oil lad n
latter renic.e was upse. and the coffin
flung out Four or five men ran to pick
it UP, but before a hand had touched
il, voice was heard, saying:
For Gods sake, let me out OF
this :"
The people at first moved back in
alright, out as the voice continued to
al. .rrs5 them the coffin was righted and
opcr =: ana Wellington was found
struggling . get ouL.
With q l:l.,e assistance he pulled HIM
self cut of t2s hox and walked into the
hou { and sat down in chair. In half
an hour ne had his clothes on and was
moving around among the amazed
people, to whom he related this ex-
perience.
l did not fall asleep until some time
after midn; ght When I awoke the
clock was striking s.. l made q move to
| get out of bed but, to my great amaze
| ment, could stir neither hand nor foot.
| had the full use of my ears, but I
could not open my eyes.
| % I argued at first that I was not yet
| wide awake, but when my wife shook me
and called me by name and | could not
| resp nd by even moving an eyelld, be-
| came satisfied that [ was in a trance.
| My mind was never clearer, and my
| hearing was painfully acute.
| made effort after effort to throw OF
the great weight which seemed TO be
holding me down, but l could rot bend
toe or crook g finger. However il
was only after the doctor had pronounced
me dead that felt any alarm.
| up to tnat time it had seemed as il
could soon manage to get rid of the
| weight. Had pistol been fired in the
| room I am sure the spell would have
been broken After the doctors ultima
| tum I felt sure that I should be buried
alive.
| :. But was l alive? All of sudden
this query flashed across my brain. and
I was trouble more than can tell you.
| As had never died before how was l
to know the sensations? Could the dead
| hear and think? Was the mind of a
| corpse in active operation? 1t was a
| problem could not solve.
| :. Not word was spoken near me
which I did not catch and fully un-
| derstand. When the two other doctors
that was dead. and that the end had
come, had been taught to believe that
the spirit Of the dead ascend-l to
heaven, and that the dead were dead in
mind as well as body. It was a base
deception. I felt indignant that il
was SO.
AS an instance of the acuteness ofmy
hearing, let me explain that after was
placed in the coffin the receptacle was
moved over to an open window In the
parlor, where it was supported on saw
horses.
1.-Two of my neighbors took seats or
| wagon box in the barnyard, fully 2Ot
feet away, and for an hour conversed Of
my death in ordinary tone OF voice.
did not miss one single word of the
conyersati n, as both afterward ad
mitted.
Il could hear every tick Of the
kitchen clock and much of the CONVEX
sation of the women in the up stairs
rooms.
''On the night previous to the funeral
about half-past ten O'Clock, and while
the two men sitting up with the corps
were reading, heard two men cl.mt
thu len into the barnyard, cross the
yard, and enter the barn. After few
minutes they came out, AMI heard the
jingle of something carried by one o.
me pair. I could not make out what
was going on. but learned afterwari
TIE TWO men stole a horse from Il fielo
op2osit-, my barn. and they entered my
premises il search of a ride.
I'heard the people assemble for tn,
funeral and as 1 caught word fron
thi, one or that enc identified them 10y
name TO my-elf. / listened closely t,
the sermon, but when the minister spoke
of me could not take it as personal. I
was as ii the name and person Belongs
to some one I had known year
before
Il knew when was carried out ant
nlacad in the hearsa and / am Certain